Caning of Charles Sumner
Videos
The caning of Charles Sumner, or the Brooks–Sumner Affair, occurred on May 22, 1856, in the United States Senate chamber, when Representative Preston Brooks, a pro-slavery Democrat from South Carolina
Political caricature of the caning, depicting Sumner on the floor holding a pen and his "Crime against Kansas" speech as Brooks lunges at him
Representative Laurence M. Keitt advised Brooks and was with him when he assaulted Sumner
Representative Henry A. Edmundson also advised Brooks and was with him during the assault on Sumner
Remaining portion of Brooks' walking cane he used to attack Charles Sumner on exhibit at the Old State House in Boston
Bleeding Kansas
Videos
Bleeding Kansas, Bloody Kansas, or the Border War, was a series of violent civil confrontations in the Kansas Territory, and to a lesser extent in western Missouri, between 1854 and 1859. It emerged f
Caning of Charles Sumner
…symbolic of the "breakdown of reasoned discourse" and willingness to resort to violence that led to the American Civil War. In 1856, during the "Bleeding Kansas" crisis, Senator Charles Sumner denounced the Kansas–Nebraska Act in his "Crime against Kansas" speech, delivered on May 19 and May 20. The long speech…
An 1855 Free-State poster
Tragic Prelude, in the Kansas State Capitol